President's Message

Happy Summer! I hope you all have had an opportunity to take some time off and re-energize this summer. It is hard to believe that our Annual meeting is just around the corner.

I hope you are all planning to join us in Anaheim, CA in September. Registration is open now, and there are a wealth of opportunities. In addition to our primary scientific sessions and panel discussions, there are a number of exciting lunch sessions and add add-on sessions to choose from. There are four exciting pre-sessions this year including: a hands on seminar on laproscopic common duct exploration, our Masters in Trauma Techniques and Practice course which will cover all the hot topics in trauma care today, an advanced research symposium focused on the transition to an independent investigator, and the AAST/ESTES Emergency Surgery Course. Later in the week you can also opt for the Neurocritical Care update and Board Review course. There is something for everyone at this year’s meeting!

We are also excited to be launching our new AAST Leadership Academy this year and have had an enthusiastic response from the membership. We are excited to welcome the first class of participants at the September meeting and this ongoing program will have a process to induct new members every year. This program will offer ongoing professional development and networking opportunities throughout the year and advanced sessions at each annual meeting.

As I mentioned in previous newsletters, our theme for this year has been Building Community and I want to thank all those who participated in the membership engagement survey. The AAST Board undertook a strategic planning process in April which include an in depth review of the survey results. We have established four work groups to develop strategies to enhance member engagement in the areas of Mentorship, Networking, Communications and Education. While we received a number of excellent ideas from the survey participants, we know not everyone completed the survey so if you have additional suggestions for program development in these areas please let us know. This fall we will begin the next phase of strategic planning focused on our Acute Care Surgery training programs. We welcome any feedback you have on the evolution of these programs.